Tattoo tips for moms

Whether you’re getting a tattoo to honor your kids or not, use these tips to be smart about your new ink. Learn what parts of your body will do some extra sagging and discover unique tattoos that moms have gotten to honor family.

Whether you’re getting your first tattoo or your 15th, try these tips to come up with the best fit for your personality and your body.

Research your artist and be prepared to spend

Cheap tattoos are never good tattoos. There’s no such thing as a great deal on a tattoo. Save up to spend a significant amount of money on your ink. You’re investing in something that’s going to be part of your life forever. Consult with your artist before your appointment and make sure your personalities mesh well enough to spend a few hours together.

Pay tribute to your children

Sometimes the only struggle in getting a tattoo is deciding what you want. For every tattoo fan who’s more into the art than the meaning, there are people don’t want the idea behind the design to be fleeting. For parents, a no brainer is often getting a tattoo that represents parenthood and children in some way.

Parent ink spotlight: Kristen Chase

“I already have a few tattoos, but had been looking for ideas after my third child to honor my kids with one,” says Chase, of Motherhood Uncensored. “I wanted something small, and different, mostly because I didn’t have a lot of spaces left on my body that I could effectively cover if I needed to, and I didn’t want anything that had already been done a lot before. I had seen a beautiful mom necklace by Jennifer Moore that used braille instead of initials and that’s when I knew I wanted to do the same idea for my tattoo.”

Choose the location carefully

If you’ve been pregnant or you’re planning to become pregnant, be aware of the parts of your body that stretch and shift. You may want to focus on areas that don’t change too much, like shoulders, ankles, ribs and arms. However, some moms take a different approach, gladly highlighting areas with stretch marks, scars and other changes related to motherhood. Consider your comfort zone, including whether or not you need to cover tattoos, when you make your decision.

Don’t decide when you’re sleepless

If you’re a new mom or you’re dealing with other life events that stress you out and leave you sleepless or emotional, take time to make a careful decision regarding a tattoo. Unless you go through an expensive, painful removal procedure, your tattoo is there to stay. The feelings behind an idea for a tattoo might not last beyond your mood. Decide on a tattoo when you feel fully able to commit to the idea behind it or the design itself.

Parent ink spotlight: Tara D’Angelo

Blogger Tara D’Angelo has three tattoos that honor three of her children. “Eriana is on my inside left wrist,” D’Angelo of Our Little Geekling says. “The angel is on my outside right ankle, and was done about a month after I lost my full-term stillborn daughter. The heart is on the inside of my left foot and is for an early miscarriage I had last spring.”